From somebody being new to the ESL game, It seems puzzling that recruiters would ask for your passport photocopy, among other personal details, when you are applying for a job from overseas. Why would any legitimate school/company ask for you passport copy before an interview. This seems so common when you are reading the job advertisements on this very site!

I have done what you expect - I used paint to hide away my passport number and other key details. The fact that some people post their resume on this website seems utter madness to me.

Has anyone been a victim of identity theft or have concerns when applying for a job overseas? A logical solution would be to fly over and look for a job in that country, but that's not always feasible for a typical job seeker.

NEVER send a copy of your passport to a recruiter. NEVER send them money either. A resume of course has to be sent. If they cannot determine whether they need you or not based on your resume, move on to another offer.

The risk of identity theft is minimal to non-existent. There are literally hundreds of hotels all over the world that have copies or scans of my passport info page (and any other foreigner who has ever checked in). Anybody with the technology to become you from that could just as easily create a new person.

As someone who actually does have final say in hiring (and who currently employs about 130 faculty members)...

I need your passport:
- to confirm you are you,
- to confirm that you qualify for/can obtain a visa (nationality is an issue when working abroad),
- your age is acceptable (must be between 21-62) for a visa application.

There's always a risk when posting one's resume/CV on any Internet job site. You open the door to getting spammed with irrelevant junk as well as unwanted responses from sketchy recruiters. Plus, if you're foolish enough to put a lot of personal and contact info out there for everyone to see, then...

A savvy job seeker sees an ad for an interesting job, and then thoroughly checks out the employer/recruiter before doing anything else. (Job seekers should be researching the employer anyway in order to also see if the teaching situation would be a good match and to tailor their cover letter & CV to the position.) After researching (i.e., using the Internet for info and asking the right questions), if everything is legit, he/she then can decide whether to fire off a cover letter & CV. In terms of the passport page, some applicants black out their passport number if they're requested to send a copy along with their application packet; while others prefer to block additional personal info.

I've never blocked out anything on my passport page copy; there's not enough info to "steal." And as johntpartee said, the risk is zilch. Moreover, security systems have become quite sophisticated; I'm seeing more airports and border crossings with eye-scan and fingerprint technology.

Why do some (legit) recruiters/employers request a copy of the passport info page prior to interviewing? Well, it confirms the applicant's age and nationality, which could affect hiring decisions based on the country's employment laws and/or visa regulations as well as the availability of visas allotted for certain nationalities. As such, an applicant could be eliminated up front solely because of this info (or lack thereof), ultimately saving time for employers and recruiters who have to assess a large number of applications. However, some employers also like the passport page so that they can see what the applicant looks like and if his/her look "fits" the school's image.